Quoted : PRACTICAL concern 7 EXERCISES Lecog 2000: 161). In this part a sequence of teacher Lecoq’s teachactivities that are often regarded as n physical preparation points forward to second-year work on the main an approach to movement aims to extend students’ physical awareness, w batics, for example, but is ach theatrical style, The separate space in which t pushes, who pus that blends a corporeal and cogr embedded dyn dramatic territories for tl remind ourselves 0 ey shoul range and reformulate them for the contemporary world. APPROACH as the title of the chapter implies, these exercises are for doing —for trying out — in practice. They may simply be read, however, along with the rest of the book, as a means of ee ws is written assuming that these Physical practice in a studio, rather than for the calming lectual contempl utor experienced in the teaching of drama, theatre studies or the performing arts will lead these three sequences However, it is quite possible for a self-directed group of students to work through these sequences themselves. In such a case that one or two participants are designated ‘tutor’ to of ‘outside eye" and to ensure that the instructions are rately. Each main sequence pursues the same basic structure: physical reparation, improvisation and a third unit entitled ‘into the dramatic participants, the lowing poi for the planning and teaching of these exercises: + Prepar easy movement, The chosen space should be as free of clutter, extraneous noise ant ay be spread out over a number lations are given for the duration of each exerc s factors, and particularly upon the ese exercises, Sometimes the learns slowly an ‘most interesting discover only after you have been working on a specific t much longer perhaps th threshold of boredom can be the p and real discovery takes place. ind accuracy: W ways be open to unsche itis important that attention is given to the accuracy and det: cach instruction, and years of practice and instruction, the corres sipated and weakened, Talk and discusion: Try to keep any process separate from the timeecoq 2000: x), no differe to programme your ¥ is that a series practical exercises art form within a chapter of a book can never substitute £ sxperience of a face-to reproducing all the sensual excitement of an idently a risk, and MeBumey’s war of the hazards of such an endeavour. Nonetheless, if transparent tions are placed upon the ambition of the task and no claims are ‘offered that it represents a proper substitute f ding Lecoq’s a worthwhile of the journe nds of students hool, college or Beyond ween bas human actions ~ pushing = and the dramatic, tories of tragedy, m e ws was conceived and at the time of writing, was teaching at the Lecoq school. Prattki started working with Lecog in 1993 and from October 1999 ~ Lecoq Pedagogy. Pr be setting up his own establish to run a ‘Lecog workshop’ on, for example, the neutral mask, the permutations of pulling and pus nies ~ the motors whidl 1 taught BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT Two fi + Movement pro + The body remembers v venir sod sngWhi nd debate have their place, the impact and effect of these exercises cannot be measured or evaluated through ‘intel lectual” analysis, As must be evident by now, ly at least — corporeally, As the body 8 oF sequences other el ndicates some preliminary indertaken with students to ered, ani presente PREPARATORY EXERCISES A: PREPARING FOR THE NEUTRAL MASK ‘The neutral ma a teaching and learning tool; itis very rarely worn in performance, Unlike a character mask, whi conflicts, the neutral mask aims to enjoy the pro balance may bring. The neutral mask allows the actor to recognise ~ in a play and openness can be achieved between balance and off-balance. Th yy the pleasure of going o 1 experience of calmness 1g the perpetu e neutral mask invites the actor to gralbalnce agua to dscover anew balance and 0.0, ‘who needs to play the inner cor cence a state of calm openn dramatic ‘off-balance’ back to up distance be ‘of a character must at frst experi ant and over134 PRACTICAL EXER This exercise 98 further by taking one Nor through being mple act of taking one step ody lives the| cof moving off balance to lance, ony to fall ff ‘concentrate on the space ng on the space you may fee thal ce, Unable to remain a fe — you wish to be moved by 19 into it. This desire to move on — this state of 488 ~ should be v be broken down int wh. I pull 1am pulled I pull This simple exercise introduces you to push-pull dynamics and wil provide a platform upon which t0 analyse the different categories that follow Exercise 4.2 > Each of you walks anecda ay be asked to repeat this sev Observers: Closely observe the movement of the walking students and reflect on questions such as these Do they push the space, or are they pushed b = Do they have to push themselves through the space, or are per body, cone who pushes the sp 0 is pushed, reluctant; someone who is pulled, ferent emotional states t permutations of pushing fent emetions? Tutor notes From this exercise students walking patterns, and (b) an aware indifferent thea characters ~ Harlequi lone, the Capt ig mathod Is also useful in mi recistert ship between words and actions, or physical behav ‘expressing the same emotion as the words, of do they counterpoint. ater cmetimesa a character's body and verbal language Gramatc tertories ‘2 strong contradiction be and language. A charact push with words, but the body is pulled back. A cheracter may his body The exzerience of these sie groundwork for tacI PUSH... I PULL: TOWARDS THE DYNAMICS OF MELODRAMA PHYSICAL PREPARATION Exercise 4.3 pairs, one standing in frento 3s the hips ~ the pel sans forward with his he person behing 1 floor, sa he pul their entire strength ether to as.a dynamic balance between yo 1 gets tires, he is free to walk off. The link The person in front continue 0 register the fecling invoke after having struggled Exercise 4.4 ge cf tis exercise to Find supporting hands, so thatthe sti Eegin to play by cushing each 1 game too aggre have been IMPROVISATION The Vi ants (neutral Imagine that you are ‘must find imaginative ways to share with the audience a visi ve asa giant. You are encouraged of course, giant-size too. robably come up vi h heary estroying aeroplanes bare har 1960 to go beyond these clichés and e' ed'to engage in ectvities that al resent, Sines everyth 1 that encourages students88 PRACTICAL EXERCISES INTO THE DRAMATIC TERRITORIES: MELODRAMA = you face each other over the wort space, one starts o wall ‘cal preparation exercises and improvisation explored above vin ns serine nd soos mally be taught in the first year of Lecoq’s progra ting var or away andthe ao the second year, students will begin to translate these expe ness. These points of immobility allow you ls into an exploration of the main dramatic territories of theatre al the space remains alive and dynamic, text, students will be able to deepen their understanding * Bs Grecually te yosing forces that make space dynamic and generate dramatic an apidly the next. Parhaps, one ples are sustained. The final lence: for example, Why? waen you remel he rescting pariner-whoe respond with & word as wl It Is important a nage ofa stick is more ap i stage to avoid tage you should rot travel around ialogue. This overcomplicates the exercise inthe space. 1 other by pushin ick suspended — the tance of a metre between The Benen ou begin to move forward end 86ck A member ly son or daughter) leaves home. ou becomes dramatically dynamic end a t be given, to wars the pregnant daughter has faster and more 3 he idea of pushing end stance oetween oun the verted and the nce, $0 as 1 i , . resent needs to say anything. Thus the focus is given to natic tension between the charaproposal that IAM PUSHED... I AM PULLE! THE DYNAMICS OF TRAGEDY PHYSICAL PREPARATION Exercise 46 dents eer : TOWARDS partner. The ne puppet _puppetser provokes mavemant in the auppet by toue his body ~ back or side © etc. When the punetst OT Bxariple; the impulse is acc ne tothe in ‘ore confident Exercise 48 You will work on iderti iyo fied the physical Thus, forename, a supe of paper ringed into sh ld only capt an tying to imitateThis can be imagine yourself on 2 lem ight provcked when @ human bed imagery of ether materials You are invited to ferent and often extreme wn journey, but the narrative look like this: the forest the teacher bepine nts are completely bores Tutor noteg fonts students » of being expos much stronger are. The physical preparation shed and ull, so thatthe Satin allows students to ciscover 2 environment Here, being push balance. ation takes th ce on toa heir own passions. The physic up a dramatic and tragic space. tudents ise ing destroyed in an ‘od by acid or the eggLecoq’s work on tragedy focus a very physical approach to text. ly in this manner. The set jence of the chorus and continues to work 0 ss generated by being pushed ible link to tragedy, and the same approach is 9 1 require a choice of appropriate texts to be e students. Perhaps importam Jy material in terms of pl Shakespearean or Greek texts may ‘more modern scripts from writers such as Artaud -cessarily have to com n famous speeches, for exampl that the extracts possess s being maninulated ve inthe space, bu 1g, Thus fences of the spoken text are stil dri hed and pu wer the corporeal nat can be later retrieved. Ne 1 by particular words words beco Ml charge the space be experienced by bot Exercise 4.11 > This time rould experience the pov ks through yoPRACTICAL EXERC who repeats should try to echo the text, but Through his voce, he gives a body does yo Exercise 4.14 i, 8 third eran post hisper the text. Now the 10 echo ich is echoed by the three in trent. Then een students are in the space, I PUSH MYSELF ... I PULL MYSELF: TOWARDS THE DYNAMICS OF COMMEDIA DELL’ARTE PHYSICAL PREPARATION Exercise 4.12 \@ students. This + prepare of testicals J must \ achieve ime aoross the oo designing th students are exposed to physiel sensations like pulling themselves ‘assault course it ig important to ensure that the Lup @ wall or rope, gushing themselves through @ tube or under & 2. ete This exercise 0 pushing yourself wit barriar’ students should I . \duced, Then each closed. Compare he Awakening (neutral 6 Half the group works,on the vid naturel woes — ‘The improvisation may be od to analyse as procisely 4 forward? Hor Imagine yoursel tobe impr Aiscoveres by guards at any mer Finally, you find a can age the perimeter used and in what se body produce during & jou ara invited simply ta cross h oreater i long coriders in c65r ling oF jonal states. AS @ ‘safety you does the same again, b ling with eyes open, your bodies. This experience of 4 time, you thers observe rounded by the sr eyes, and ie to fook a You ean begin to ly or in small groups: You have made the decisionPRACTICAL EXERC! mts and constrains breaks away frem against the laws of gravity towards discovers the necess' jh and pull ims in Within these themes, dat Lecoa's school is the deep desice to & ° push themselves to ov INTO THE DRAMATIC TERRITORIES: COMMEDIA DELL'ARTE Exercise 4.15 fartnershend and pul himthrough ng to aush him. In 2, ln the second pat of this exer IMPROVISATION he Divorce Here, the theme introduced above is taken even further: Tutor notes This exercise Is ani «stock characters change the next. One momar ith B above, who does not want to-go home from they pull or push themselves as a resu ciroumstanca, or new piece of infor ‘he Reconciliation is theme is a development from the improvisation above, but is around and walk back, since theyNO , OOOO EE Ee a EXERCISES ae . Further activities could be devised us work could be put or short extracts — from existing melodramatic or tragic texts. Equal you could devise short commedta scenarios that aterapt to build on what you have learned from the third section above. Finally, you shoul reflect on what the experience of working through these exercises h lone for your wider perceptions of drama and theatre reunion, but atthe last ot Tre oro is repeated several tenes until the fren oly exhausted, have ost ll hope of @ possible reconciliation, However unexpect the (wa cannot held back their lov foreach and the story ends with tearful emt will aiways and his brave uth, since he himselfforward in order to pretend that he isa same time pulled back by his enormous fea, haracters are exposed to these kinds ‘orcas within thamsalvas, This ig the essential movement playing comme DEBRIEF Depending on circumstances and context, tutors will wish to organise different levels of evaluation and debriefing with their students, All of you, however, should be invited to identify the mai throughout the sequences you have experienced. It talk openly about what effect the work bas had than restricting the debrief to intellectual analysis